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Project Cargo Weekly (PCW) is an e-newsletter for the project shipping and forwarding industry. PCW publishes in-depth and exclusive interviews with forwarding and shipping industry professionals every week.
Mr. Prashant Popat, Director VDSPL participated in Shippers & LSP Business Forum on CTL 2018 with HAZCHEM & Liquid Bulk 2018 on 22nd November 2018 at The Gateway Hotel, Akota Gardens, Vadodara.
The 65th AGM of Bombay Overseas Freight Brokers Association (BOFBA) was held on October 4, 2018 at Hotel Krishna Palace in Mumbai. It saw participation from all the members of BOFBA. The AGM was followed by a trade get-together later in the evening.
The AGM was presided over by the BOFBA Managing Committee, headed by the Chairman Mr Sanjiv Potnis, and including Mr Anup Deosthalee, Mr Jayesh Gandhi, Mr Prashant Popat and Mr Rajiv Mukhtyar.
Addressing members, the Chairman said that the Association plans to get much closer to the entire shipping fraternity. BOFBA being one of the oldest associations in India, needs to get on a much bigger platform, he emphasised, adding that BOFBA and other active associations in the trade should come together and discuss the common issues and problems they face. BOFBA, which is 65 years old, has successfully traversed its journey thus far and plans to attain even greater heights with lots of dedication and hard work of the committee members, MrPotnis said.
The AGM also saw the participation of representatives from the Calcutta Freight Brokers Association (CFBA), among them being the Chairman Mr Vivek Choudhary, Mr Manoj Kumar Vyas and Mr Raj Singh Chopra.
The Chief Guest at the trade get-together was
Mr Ugo Vincent, Managing Director, CMA CGM Agencies (India) Pvt. Ltd. Also gracing the occasion were
Mr Mathieu Friedberg, Global Head CAN Dept, Commercial Agency Network, CMA CGM SA, Marseilles, and Capt. Swaminathan Rajagopalan, Commercial Director, CMA CGM India.
In a brief address, Mr Vincent said that CMA CGM was happy to join in the evening with the freight brokers community, who are supposed to be the oldest and experienced people of the trade. He also briefed that CMA CGM has completed 40 years and will extend its support to the community.
He also stressed on the point that the entire shipping and logistics fraternity is working for the same industry, with the same passion to together create, day after day, the history of Indian shipping.
Mr Potnis thanked CMA CGM for their presence and support to the fraternity, and also hoped for stronger ties.
The get-together was well attended by Leading Shipping and Logistics stalwarts.
"It's London and Hong Kong. It is too vibrant and unsullied to spend a quality time in a break." says Prashant N Popat, Director, Velji Dosabhai & Sons Pvt. Ltd.
RAJKOT : "We have thrown a pebble in the pond and its ripples are spreading now." This is how Raj Khalid, who represents Port of Antwerp in India, summed up the first roadshow organized by the port on Wednesday.
In fact, this was the first ever roadshow-cum-seminar organized by any international port in Saurashtra's commercial capital, which is the hub of engineering goods and auto parts in India.
"It was a historic moment for Rajkot exporters and forwarders as no other port has ever approached them with such detailed information on easing their supply chain logistics to tap the international market," Khalid, former trader commissioner to Flanders, told TOI.
The seven-member delegation led by Luc Arnouts, its international working director also included Babette Desfossez, customs attache of Belgium, Peter Huyghebaert, Consul General of Belgium in Mumbai and other top officials of the Port of Antwerp.
Besides the forwarders and exporters, representatives of AP Moller Maersk Terminals Port Pipavav also participated in the seminar to highlight the fact that they have direct shipping lines from their port to Antwerp now.
Among the major concerns of exporters and forwarders was the customs procedure at Antwerp. "They were surprised to know that it takes less than two minutes to get custom clearances for goods as the entire system is based on algorithm and there is no human interface involved," Khalid added.
According to rough estimates, around 2,000 containers are exported from Rajkot through various ports including Mundra and Mumbai's Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT).
One of the biggest takeaways were the savings they could achieve with a smooth supply chain and delivery system due to efficient ports.
"The purpose of meet was to encourage exporters to take a closer look at their supply chain to get optimum efficiency, delivery times and costs. Often manufacturers look within the factory and the manufacturing process to get efficiencies when they may well lie beyond the factory walls," added Khalid.
The Port of Antwerp had organized the roadshow in association with Velji Dosabhai, the largest forwarder in Rajkot, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) and the Saurashtra Vyapar Udyog Mandal (SUVM).
Parag Tejura, president of SUVM, said, "Exports of small and medium scale units in Rajkot have scaled up to Rs 300 crore after we organized three international conferences in the last two years. The meeting was very cordial and we hope more foreign ports will come and showcase their facilities now."
Mr. Prashant Popat, Director VDSPL participated in International Conference on HAZCHEM & Liquid Bulk 2016 on 2nd December 2016
at The Gateway Hotel, Vadodara.
Our Chairman and Managing Director, Mr. Natwarlal Devchand Popat, received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 4th All India Maritime And Logistics Awards 2013, on 6th September 2013 at Hotel Trident, Nariman Point, Mumbai.
